“Books change the world. And so can you.”
—Katherine Applegate, Collaborative Summer Library Program 2025 Summer Reading Champion

Katherine Applegate, Newbery Medalist and #1 New York Times-bestselling author, is the  2025 Summer Reading Champion! Parents and guardians of budding storytellers ages 8-12 are invited to enter their child in the Katherine Applegate Color Our World Writing Contest this June-July!

• Date: Entries are open from June 1 – July 31
• Age of writer: 8-12
• Abbreviated Rules:
  No purchase necessary. Open only to legal residents of the 50 United States and D.C. who are age 18 or older and of the legal age of majority. Entry period begins at 9:00 AM (ET) on 6/1/2025 and ends at 11:59 PM ET on 7/31/2025. Void where prohibited. For full Official Rules, visit the following link. Sponsored by Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group, 120 Broadway, New York, NY 10271.
• Complete Rules and Requirements: View Here
• Privacy Notice: View Here

To Submit an Entry:  

1. To enter the Contest, during the Entry Period, each entrant must submit a short story about a character who changes or colors the world (a “Submission”) written and authored by the Entrant’s Minor, who is between the ages of eight and twelve at time of entry.
2. The Submission must be between 1,000 and 1,500 words. Submissions must have a catchy title, a protagonist who takes an action that changes someone else’s day for the better, and a beginning, middle, and end.
3. Then, during the Entry Period, the entrant must visit the website located at https://bit.ly/ColorOurWorldContest and follow the on-screen entry instructions. Entry submission area is not live until June 1, 2025.

• Prizes: 

  The grand prize winner will receive a virtual writing workshop with Katherine Applegate, signed copies of Willodeen, Crenshaw, Odder, and Wishtree, and $500 of books for readers ages 8-12 from Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group.

  Three runner-ups will receive a signed copies of Willodeen, Crenshaw, Odder, and wishtree.

Contest WRITING PROMPT
Your writing can change and color our world! Write a short story between 1,000 – 1,500 words about a character that takes an action that changes someone else’s day for the better. The action can be as small or grand as you’d like — even small acts can make a big difference! Your story must have a catchy title, a protagonist that takes an action to make a change, and a beginning, middle, and end.

The contest will be judged by the Collaborative Summer Library Program, Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group, and Katherine Applegate.